How do you build a town from scratch? The first ingredient is a dream. W.W. Duson, general manager of the Southwestern Louisiana Land Company, orchestrated the purchase of land along the railroad. Railroader Patrick Crowley moved his "Crowley Switch" house depot to the new townsite as Duson stirred interest through advertisements in Midwestern newspapers. Duson blended the surveying, bringing 100 workers to clear the land, with Duson Brothers' real estate business to help shape the town. Mixed in were special excurstion trains that brought in prospective buyers of lots and farmland. Finally, a heaping helping of pioneer adventures- including merchant Jac Frankel, physician D.P. January, farmer brothers C.J. and Thomas Freeland, attorney James Barry, banker Preston Lovell, and many others- were added to spice up the town.